FROZEN: The body of Louise Brough was discovered in a freezer at a flat in Wilmcote House in Portsmouth [GOOGLE]

Philipe Brough, 54, of Portsmouth, Hampshire, pleaded guilty to fraud and preventing a decent burial of his elderly mother who he cared for full-time.

The body of Louise Brough was found frozen last August in the flat they shared and a post-mortem examination found she died of natural causes six months earlier in February.

Her son chose not to disclose the death to the Department of Work and Pensions in order to continue receiving her pension and the benefits he received for looking after her.

He had given up his job in 2008 after she became bed-bound and was only able to leave the flat occasionally.

Brough falsely claimed a total of £5,390 in benefits and has since repaid £2,000.

Alarms were raised when Portsmouth City Council tried to contact her regarding works that needed to be carried out to their council flat, which would require them to move out temporarily.

He explained that Brough refused staff access to the property and appeared evasive when asked questions about his mother.

When the police were called, Brough told officers that she had been living with an aunt in London but was arrested on suspicion of murder after it was found that he was lying.

An investigation concluded that there was no suggestion that Brough had caused or was involved in his mum's death.

Prosecuting barrister Martyn Booth said: "[The flat] was described as being in something of a state of disarray, it contained a large amount of property cluttering up most of the space in it.

"It was described as typical of the type of person one would associated with as a hoarder."

Brough and his mum moved into the flat when he was 11-years-old following the death of his father in the 1970s.

“This is not a wicked or evil offence, it's an offence borne of distress, depression of an emotional breakdown”

Matthew Jewell

Mr Booth continued: "As they cleared items out of it, they found in the corner of a room, hidden behind a mattress, an upright freezer which had been covered by a large cardboard box.

"The freezer was described as being in working order, they found it was plugged in, the power lead was concealed behind various pieces of wood on the floor.

"Industrial tape was placed across the door seals, all designed to prevent the door opening accidentally.

"When the freezer was opened, it revealed the dead body of an elderly white female dressed in her nightclothes. The body was described as frozen solid and was wrapped in a duvet or sheet."

Defending barrister Matthew Jewell said Brough had a history of depression and had panicked when his mother had died.

He said Brough's primary concern was a fear that he would lose his home following his mother's death and he had not set out to commit fraud.

Mr Jewell said: "This is not a wicked or evil offence, it's an offence borne of distress, depression of an emotional breakdown."

Sentencing Brough to an eight-month term of imprisonment suspended for 12 months with a 12-month supervision order, Judge Roger Hetherington said he accepted Brough had acted out of an "emotional inability to cope".

He said: "What is inexcusable is to embark on the elaborate course that you did involving a considerable deception over a period of time in dealing with your mother's death in the way that you did."